PLAYERS Parking, Follow-Up

We've done grooves, sex scandals and yet I get just as many calls and emails over...Players Championship parking! And there were your comments.

I'm staying out of this one, except to present some different views.

On one hand there's the tournament's executive director Jay Monahan, who explains that only around 1000 fans per tournament day were using a shuttle from University of North Florida since the program was started three years ago, costing the tournament about $40 a person for a net loss of at least $100,000 for the week. Money, Monahan argues, that could go to charity. He also noted that the $20 parking pass was lowered and can be purchased at local Publix stores, in addition to an online purchase. There are three in the general vicinity of the course including one at PGA Tour Boulevard.

Another reader pointed out that the $20 lot is "adjacent to the course where you can walk, and the first hole you see is No. 17. You've been to enough U.S. Opens and PGAs where the parking that close to the course, if you can find it at all, is more than double."

Mark Spencer, a Jacksonville resident, counters with this blog post.

If you cannot park for free, and since the tournament is in a gated community, why even make it an 'option' to purchase parking?  Look at the fine print here at the online ticketing page.  "Don't forget to add-on parking during your ticket purchase" Seriously...I can't make up stuff THIS funny...only those living INSIDE the gates of Sawgrass are catered to in this decision!

What about the people that already purchased tickets?  If I already paid $165 for the weekly pass, I'd now have to pay an additional $85.50 ($75.00 PLUS the 'fees' of $10.50 because of the TOUR's unneccessary relationship with TicketMaster) for the ability to USE my freaking ticket.  Any sane person sees this as a 50% charge for the right to use what you already purchased. 

I'll let you know what/if people are saying in a couple of weeks, live from Ponte Vedra. I know you can't wait!